25 August 2016
Avoidable Accidents
Are we losing our sense of personal responsibility?
by Lynda Goetz
I thought long and hard before putting pen to paper (so to speak) on this subject. The tragic accidents around the coast over the weekend have left several families bereaved and children in hospital and, without knowing the particular details of each incident, I cannot, of course, know how exactly they occurred. However, on the face of it, most of these accidents look as if they could have been avoided. This thought was reinforced by another small item of news which caught my eye.
Following a huge rock fall in West Bay in Dorset, local authorities are indicating that they may have to close beaches in the Jurassic Coast area or consider putting wardens on the beaches, unless tourists start exercising more common sense and stop ignoring warning signs. Sally King, the area’s visitor manager, said visitors needed to be encouraged to ‘take responsibility for their safety’. A top geologist, Richard Edmonds, echoed her comments and called for a code similar to the Green Cross Code for pedestrians to be brought in.
Limestone cliffs, such as those of the Jurassic Coast, are by their very nature prone to erosion by wind, water and weather. Rock falls result. It therefore makes sense that any activity carried out underneath the cliffs should be carried on with an awareness of the dangers. If you are collecting fossils you are going to have to be close to the cliffs. However, walkers or sunbathers do not need to be beneath the cliffs and, whilst large falls in the summer are rare, they can happen, so our behaviour should reflect this.
In the same way, standing on rocks close to the sea and at risk of being swept in, when the waves are ten to twelve feet high, is not responsible behaviour. Taking ‘selfies’ or photographs of friends and family lined up on the edge with the waves and spray behind may produce dramatic photos for Facebook, but it also clearly exposes people to totally unnecessary risk. To include young children in that risk would seem to be particularly irresponsible. The wave that sweeps you in is not a ‘freak wave’; it is, as anyone who engages in any water sport knows, part of a larger ‘set’ (group) of waves which occur quite naturally in such conditions.
Modern life can lack adventure and excitement. Many of the amusements which used to be available to children have been excised from their lives by the over-anxious concern of parents or the diktats of Health and Safety legislation. Many of the dangers to which adults were exposed have been removed by advances in technology and the spread of civilisation. Hence, perhaps, the increase in substitute adventures in the form of extreme sports or activities such as bungee jumping. However, most of those who participate in such things make it their business to be aware of the dangers involved and to mitigate the chances of accidents as far as possible. So why do others unthinkingly court danger for themselves and their families, not to mention those who are called upon to rescue them?
The answer probably lies quite simply in that one word – unthinkingly. Our modern world appears generally to be safe. Where it is not, legislation exists to try and ensure it is made so. Barriers are erected both legally and physically to stop the public from being exposed to danger. Members of the public then take it for granted that unless they are actually barred from doing something it is not wrong or dangerous to do it. Thus where notices do not actually say ‘it is illegal to…’ or ‘it is not permitted to…’, or there are no safety rails preventing access, it must be OK. The forces of nature however are entirely unconcerned with the safety or otherwise of human beings and are ignored at our peril. We all need to be aware and to take responsibility for ourselves and our dependants. Not doing so puts others needlessly in harm’s way as well. Official rescue services and volunteers, such as the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution), surely have enough to do without having to put their lives in danger for those who are careless and irresponsible with regard to their own safety. “It was an accident,” my son used to wail after some childish disaster. “And most accidents are caused by NOT THINKING”, his father would respond.
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